Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
Jorge Silva | Reuters
WASHINGTON – The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent a strange message to the United States on Tuesday, when Biden administration officials reach high-level talks in Japan and South Korea.
“We take this opportunity to warn the new US administration that it is trying to break away [gun] smell of dust in our land, “Kim Yo Jong said in a statement referring to joint US and South Korean military exercises in the region.
“Yes [the U.S.] he wants to sleep in peace for the next four years, he better refrain from stinking on his first step, “he added, according to an English translation.
Kim’s comments, led by the state-run Central Korea News Agency, are Pyongyang’s first reactions since Biden rose to the presidency and coincided with the arrival of Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in the region.
Blinken and Austin, on their first trip abroad under Biden’s direction, arrived in Japan on Tuesday and will travel to South Korea on Wednesday. The couple plans to reaffirm U.S. commitments to the region and discuss ongoing security challenges, including North Korea.
“To reduce the risk of escalation, we contacted North Korean government channels, starting in mid-February, even in New York. So far we have not received a response from Pyongyang,” Blinken said during a press conference this Tuesday. “This is happening over the course of a year without an active dialogue with North Korea despite multiple attempts by the United States.”
Left Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken wear protective masks while attending a meeting of the Japanese Security Advisory Committee (CSC) in Tokyo, Japan. on Tuesday, March 16, 2021.
Kiyoshi Ota | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called on the Biden administration not to let the parallel economic pressure on North Korea fall.
“I hope this administration commits North Korea to the same massive sanctions regime as us, which put real pressure on President Kim to get to the table,” Pompeo told Fox Business on Sunday. “We have made good progress. We have not made it all the way. We managed to stop long-range missile testing, a big problem for the United States of America and our security,” he added.
The Trump administration made some initial progress with North Korea, but negotiations broke down more than a year ago after the United States refused to grant sanctions relief measures in exchange for dismantling nuclear weapons. and Pyongyang long-range missiles.
The Biden administration has tried unsuccessfully to restart nuclear talks with North Korea.
Under third-generation North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the incarcerated state has conducted its most powerful nuclear test, launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile and threatened to send missiles into waters near the territory. American of Guam.
Since 2011, Kim has launched more than 100 missiles and conducted four nuclear weapons tests, which is more than what his father, Kim Jong Il, and grandfather, Kim Il Sung, launched during a period of 27 years.